Price Matching in Canada 101

A great way to save money, some stores (mostly department stores and electronics stores) offer a price matching guarantee on their prices. This is meant to prove their customers that they constantly have the lowest prices available.

The idea behind these price match guarantees is pretty simple: if there’s a lower price available elsewhere, stores with such policies will match it and in some instances actually beat it.

Price-Matching Guidelines

There are a few things to keep in mind when you are planning to claim a price match. Applying these tips should improve your chances of success:

1. Make sure to know a store’s price match policy properly in order to ensure that you know about certain exceptions and that your product of choice qualifies.

3. It could be a good idea not to mention that you’re planning to claim a price match until the product has been scanned at the register. This will enable you to confirm the product’s price just in case that it is the same as displayed on the shelf.

Next Level Price Matching

As I mentioned before, some stores don’t only match a competition’s price, they will beat it, usually by a certain percentage. While this practice isn’t that common yet, it can lead to some wicked deals. Let’s say you have found a pair of speakers on sale, that usually retail for $150 at store A for only $75. Show up at store B (the one with a price-match guarantee) with tangible proof of the deal, and you will end up paying roughly $67,50 for the speakers, if the price-match was for an additional 10% off. Pretty good isn’t it?

The best part is that you don’t have to feel bad about doing it, as stores usually prefer to keep you as a customer instead of losing you to a competitor. Plus, if you enjoyed an amazing deal at a store you’ll most likely end up bragging about it (at least a little bit), creating some word-of-mouth publicity for this store and its ’unbeatable prices’.

Stores that Beat the Competition in Canada

Now for the part I bet you’ve been itching to read, ever since you started this article. Here’s a list of all the stores in Canada that don’t just stop at offering a price match guarantee but also beat their competitors’ prices. This list will potentially grow with time (let’s keep our fingers crossed) and feel free to notify me about any omissions and I’ll rectify it as soon as possible.

Staples Canada states that it will not be undersold, offering a 110% price match guarantee in the form of a credit (up to $50 worth). You have 14 days to claim the price match. Learn more here.

Future Shop Canada offers a very similar lowest price guarantee to Best Buy’s (they are operated by the same company after all). Beating the competition’s price by 10% within 30 days or 14 days depending on the category of item. Learn more here.

Rona will also match the price from a competitor’s sale flyer and beat it by 10%. Only applies in-store.

Canadian Tire also offers a price match guarantee that applies on any ads from their competitors for an identical item. This store will give customers an extra 10% off (the lowest price), but in Canadian Tire money.

Giant Tiger claim they will “beat the price of any advertise competitor” although some exceptions apply, including clearance sales, percentage discounts, rebates, BOGO offers, private label products and online offers.

The Bargain Shop Canada beat any of their local competitors prices. They simply require to see the printed ad as proof.

Stores who Price Match in Canada

Target Canada will match any competitors’ price as long as the item is identical in brand name, size, weight, colour, quantity and model number. “Price match may be requested at Guest Services prior to your purchase with proof of current lower price or by bringing in your original Target store receipt and proof of the current lower price.”

London Drugs Canada also offers a price match guarantee which stipulates that if a customer finds the “same merchandise advertised in print at a lower price and if London Drugs confirm the competitor has the product in stock, we’ll match that price for one product”.

So here you go. This should be enough to get you started and potentially save some big bucks. How about you? Have you ever successfully claimed a price match? Where did you do it? Did you have any trouble with the cashier?